The Thirteenth Doctor
by TimeLordPrime
Summary: Here's my ongoing very AU take on what the ending of Death in Heaven could but probably won't be like. It's just a lighthearted little story so take it for it is. Here's how I think that Twelve regenerating into a woman just might go and I hope that you'll like just who the Thirteenth Doctor turns out to be. Here's a hint. She's someone who is already very, very familiar to us all!
1. Clara Who?

THE THIRTEENTH DOCTOR

I do not own Doctor Who and I am making no profit off of this.

**Author's Note: This story is a result of an idea that popped into my head after watching Flatline and that just refused to go away. I'm not sure how serious that I really mean for it to be but I hope that you like it. Obviously this takes place in a completely AU ending of Death in Heaven. **

"Doctor, you did it! I don't know how but you did it. I was sure that you were dead after what Missy did to you. I didn't think that even you could have survived an attack like that, but I'm so glad that you did," Kate Stewart said with a warm smile as she sighed in relief while overlooking the remnants of the battle that they had all just gone through in order to save the planet.

There were broken and shattered Cybermen everywhere lying still and motionless and massive damage all over London, but they had finally won the day at last. In the end, the Doctor had managed to come through and somehow save the day after all, and Missy had been forced to escape in her TARDIS.

It was all finally over with at last she thought to herself, but she was soon to find out that there was still one last act left to play out in this little drama before it could truly be over.

"I did die though, Kate," The Doctor said in a weak voice as he tried to keep from falling over as a sudden weakness overtook him.

"What?" Kate asked in surprise.

"He died, Kate," Clara said as she finally managed to find them amid the debris of the battle.

A man that Kate didn't recognize was walking alongside her as the two of them made their way up to her. She reasoned that this must be the same Danny Pink that Clara kept trying to find earlier. Somehow either she or the Doctor must have managed to save him and restore him back to his body after all.

Kate looked at Clara in confusion as she said, "If he's dead, then how is he talking to me? How do you know about it anyway, Clara? You weren't here when he had his final battle with Missy."

Clara smiled enigmatically but said nothing as the Doctor said, "This body is dead but I'm still here because I'm about to regenerate. Surely your father told you about regeneration, didn't he, Kate?"

Kate nodded as she said, "Yes, he told me about how he saw you change into a completely different man once. He also said something about Sarah Jane Smith having witnessed the regeneration of a Time Lord called K'anpo Rimpoche. I wasn't sure what to think of that one though. Sarah Jane told him that someone who she had befriended in K'anpo's home had later turned out to be K'anpo's next incarnation in disguise all along even though he hadn't actually regenerated yet. I never did understand how that worked."

The Doctor laughed a little as he said, "Yes, I suppose that would appear strange to such a limited species wouldn't it? Let me try to explain it so that even a human can understand it then."

"Doctor, stop being rude," Clara chastised him.

"I didn't realize that I was. I was simply stating a fact. You see, Kate, sometimes when a Time Lord is about to go through a particularly troubling regeneration and needs a little extra help a projection of his future self will appear and guide him through it. This projection may actually take up a life of their own and not even be aware at all of what they truly are until the very moment of regeneration," The Doctor explained.

Clara now caught the Doctor as he tried to fall over as she said, "It's going to be alright, Doctor. Don't you worry about a thing, okay? I'm here now."

"So you remember then?" The Doctor asked her with a smile.

"Of course I do. Now I finally understand why I was able to survive your timestream when the Great Intelligence couldn't and why the TARDIS told me your real name. No wonder I could open the TARDIS doors by snapping my fingers," Clara said with a smile.

"It also explains your weird addiction to soufflés," The Doctor said with a small laugh.

"It's no weirder than fish fingers and custard or jelly babies," Clara countered,

Danny now spoke up for the first time since he had arrived there as he asked, "Clara, what are you talking about?"

"I'm so sorry, Danny. I was never who you thought that I was. I wasn't even who I thought that I was," Clara said with a sad look on her face.

"What are you talking about? If you're not Clara, then who are you?" Kate asked.

"The moment has been prepared for, Doctor. I'm here now and the Earth is finally safe at last. Do it," Clara said without answering Kate as both she and Danny continued to look on in absolute confusion.

That confusion soon became complete bewilderment after what happened next.

The Doctor then began to glow with energy all over his body just as Kate's father had told her that his Doctor had done. He looked at Clara and smiled now as he opened his arms wide and stood before her.

"Good bye, Doctor," Clara said to him with a sad smile.

Then she walked right into him and disappeared as the two of them merged together!

"What is going on?!" Danny asked in absolute shock.

"Change, PE, and not a moment too soon," The Doctor said.

Then he began to scream as energy poured out of his head and hands, and his entire body began to change. In fact, his body changed now more than it ever had before in all of his lives.

Kate and Danny now both had their jaws hit the floor at once as the Doctor changed into . . . Clara!

The new Doctor smiled as she said, "Well, this is definitely going to take some getting used to, isn't it? I think I can safely speak for all of us when I say that."

"Clara?" Danny asked in absolute astonishment.

"No, I'm afraid not. She served her purpose and she's gone now. I'm sorry. I have Clara's personality and memories of course, but I'm also so much more than she ever was. I am the Doctor," The Doctor said with a sympathetic look in her eyes at the crushed look on Danny's face.

"How can you be the Doctor?" Kate asked still not accepting what she was seeing right now.

"Well, Soldier Lady, it was just as your father and the Old Man told you. Sometimes a projection of a future me is created and given an independent existence way ahead of time so that I can help the main me out. That's who Clara was. I did this once before actually when I created a future version of my fifth self to help Scarf Boy out when the Master killed him too. She does seem to kill me a lot come to think of it, doesn't she?"

Danny seemed to be grasping things a little bit better now as he said, "That's why the other Doctor was testing you, I mean her, like he was and pushing her so much then, isn't it? He was preparing her, I mean you, to become him soon."

"That's right. I knew that if anyone would understand that it would be you," The Doctor said with a smile.

"So what does this mean then? I mean is Clara really gone for good? I mean completely gone?" Danny asked hesitantly.

"No, of course not. What was most important about her is still here alive and well even though the person that you knew no longer exists," The Doctor said as she pointed to her hearts.

She saw the perplexed look on Danny's face as she said, "Look, I know that this going to be strange. It is for me too. Believe me. Even I've never done this kind of thing before. It's going to be a great new adventure. You know if you want to you could come with me while we sort everything out. If you want to that is. I know that you're not really a fan of this whole running for your life thing. If you do come, I swear that I'll make the best soufflés that you've ever had in your life. I can do that now that I'm a Time Lord. I have highly advanced cooking skills."

"Really?" Kate asked in amusement.

"No, I lied. It seems that Rule Number One still applies even in this form. Being a Time Lord doesn't improve your cooking skills a bit unfortunately," The Doctor said with a disappointed look on her face.

"I'd be willing to try it out for a trip or two," Danny said hesitantly.

The Doctor smiled as she said, "You've just made my day, Soldier Man! Well that and not dying for good of course. That goes without saying. By the way, sorry about the PE thing and all of the little putdowns that the Old Man made. I was really grumpy in that body for some reason. I think it had something to do with being so old. I'm always tetchy whenever I'm old."

"Doctor, I don't know what kind of relationship that you think that we're going to have. I loved Clara but you're not . . . I mean you're not her. Not really," Danny said hesitantly.

"I am and yet I'm not. I'm sorry. I truly am. I know how much she meant to you. I, unlike Mr. Grumpy Pants, understand exactly why you're all confused and upset though and it's okay. I'm not expecting anything from you. If you just want a trip or two for closure to move on from the memory of Clara, then that's okay," The Doctor said sympathetically.

Danny nodded still with a confused look on his face as she said, "If it helps you any, you can still call me Clara if you want."

"I'd like that," Danny said as he smiled a little more eagerly.

The Doctor smiled as she saw his future unfold before her now while she read his timeline. He would travel with her a little while and then finally move on and find someone else to replace Clara. Then his descendent, who would wind up being the great-grandson of a time traveler after all since Danny would be her companion, would meet Clara in the future and have to be very careful not to reveal too much about her own future to her.

She realized now that it explained why she had gone to the Doctor's past after she had visited Danny's. She had gone to her own past without even realizing it and caused her own nightmares as a child.

"So are we going then? I have plenty of things to show you that will just knock your socks off, Mr. Pink," The Doctor said.

He eagerly walked after her as she said, "Now where did I put the TARDIS? I hope that the Old Cow isn't going to start giving me problems already and turn herself invisible on me."

"It would probably help if you didn't call her an Old Cow," Danny suggested.

The Doctor laughed as she said, "Old habits die hard I suppose. Well, come on then. First I'm going to pick out my new outfit which will definitely include a tight skirt, and then I'm going to the kitchen and make the universe's greatest soufflé if it kills me."

"I just hope that it doesn't kill me too," Danny said with a frown.

"Oi! I heard that," The Doctor said with a frown that quickly turned into a smile.

Kate shook her head and smiled as she watched them go. Osgood was never going to believe this!

And she'd definitely be kicking herself for missing it.

THE END

**So that's it I guess . . . unless anyone wants more of course. By the way, I think that Jenna would make a great Doctor. I know I'd certainly watch the show with her in charge. I think it could work. She already has an in-built fanbase so that solves the problem of getting people to like the new Doctor right there. It's just an idea anyway and not a completely serious one so don't get too upset about it if you're not in favor of it. I definitely don't want to start up a flame war or anything. I just decided to write this for a little fun. I hope that you'll take it in that spirit and enjoy it for what it is.**


	2. A New Companion (Or Three)

CHAPTER 2

I do not own Doctor Who or Mary Poppins and I am making no profit off of this.

Thank you for all of your favorites, follows, and reviews!

**Author's Note: Well after what happened in the beginning of Death in Heaven (I won't spoil it here in case you haven't seen it yet) and the great response that this story received, I definitely had to continue it. Besides I'm just as eager to see a Jenna Doctor as some of you are even if I have to write her myself.**

CHAPTER 2

A NEW COMPANION (OR THREE)

Just as the Doctor had expected, Danny left after a single trip in the TARDIS. He had seen more than enough to know that her kind of life definitely wasn't for him. He wanted a nice, ordinary life which was a life that he definitely would never have with her.

She felt extremely sad to see him go despite knowing that he would find someone else. Perhaps he was better off though. All being around her could ever bring him was tragedy and disaster because she knew that she ruined just as many lives if not more than she ever made better.

River had once disagreed with Chinny about that but both he, and she knew the real truth about the matter. She destroyed people whether she meant to or not. and she couldn't do that to Danny. She owed it to Clara to keep him safe.

With that in mind, she had half decided that maybe she shouldn't have any companions anymore at least for a little while anyway. Then again she had done that before, and it hadn't turned out so well, had it? She still shuddered whenever she thought about what had happened on Mars and how off the rails that Ten had gone there.

It had made her wonder what would have happened if Christina de Souza had been there. Would her presence there have made a difference?

She couldn't help but think that it would have and that finally decided her mind for her. Now the problem was how to find someone. She had never actively sought a companion out (other than Clara of course). They just always seemed to find her.

Or did they? Maybe the TARDIS was not only taking her to where she needed to go but also to who she needed to be with at the time as well.

With that theory in mind, the Doctor let the TARDIS choose their next destination. She smiled in eager anticipation of where she would wind up next even as she ate one of her homemade soufflés and tried not to gag.

"I still can't make a decent soufflé to save my life. Maybe I should take on a gourmet cook as my next companion," She complained as she threw the soufflé to the floor in aggravation.

The TARDIS suddenly shook violently as the Doctor said, "Okay, okay! I'm sorry. I'll clean up the mess. Don't have a hissy fit!"

Then the TARDIS landed with a violent thud that sent the Doctor flying across the Console Room and made her land headfirst into the nearest wall. She got up with a king-sized headache as she gave the console the stare of death.

"Oi! I just regenerated a few weeks ago. I don't need to do it again so quickly, you Old Cow," The Doctor protested as she rubbed the back of her head gently where a huge bump had just appeared on it.

The TARDIS' console made a loud beep of protest and the Doctor sighed as she said, "Yes, I'm sorry for calling you an Old Cow. That was a leftover trace of Clara talking. You know I love you, Old Girl. Do you forgive me?"

The TARDIS beeped again and the Doctor smiled at the TARDIS' response even as she began to hear a loud pounding on the TARDIS doors and the sound of someone yelling to her from outside. She frowned in puzzlement as she went to open the door.

Where was she and who would know about the TARDIS there?

She soon got her answer as she opened the door to discover someone who she thought that she would never see again. It was Maisie Pitt who she had saved on the Orient Express. This time she wasn't wearing clothing from the 1920s anymore but the futuristic clothing of her own time period. It was somewhat jarring to the part of the Doctor that was all that was left of Clara.

As she looked around her now, she saw that they were once more traveling through space together. This time it was on a proper spacecraft and not one in the shape of a train. Everything looked peaceful on the surface, but the Doctor knew that something had to be wrong because Maisie looked like she was on the verge of having another mental breakdown again like she had had before.

"Somehow I knew that you and the Doctor would be here. Weird things are starting to happen again just like they did the last time that I saw this old blue box. I just knew that you would be here soon. I could feel it. Whenever you and that old man are around the whole world gets turned upside down for some reason. Clara, where is the Doctor? I have a feeling that we're going to need him very soon now," Maisie said in a nervous voice

The Doctor decided to go along with her mistaken assumption of her identity for now so that she wouldn't waste potentially valuable time trying to explain to the woman just how she was the Doctor now and where Clara had gone. Besides that, she was still Clara in a way so it wasn't exactly a lie. Lying seemed to bother this version of her a lot more than it had the last one especially after all of the lies that Clara had told Danny.

"The Doctor's in the TARDIS," The Doctor said which was technically true since she was still standing in the TARDIS after all.

"Well, bring him out here already. Who knows how much time that we have?" Maisie said in a frightened voice.

"He bumped his head pretty badly when we landed just now, Maisie. He's going to need a little time to recover from that. Tell me all about it, and I'll see if I can help. I'm pretty good at this saving the day stuff too you know," The Doctor said still not technically lying.

"Really? As I remember it, you lied to me and told me that the Doctor was going to save me even when you didn't know for sure whether he could or not. Why should I trust you now?" Maisie said obstinately.

"Yes, I know and I'm so sorry about that. The Doctor was almost certain that he could save you, but he had to lie and tell me that he couldn't so that the computer on the train wouldn't find out that he had a plan. I promise that I'll never lie to you again though, Maisie. I've kind of made that a new resolution for myself. No more lying. Ever," The Doctor said with a expression of regret on her face.

She was sure that the sounds behind her from the TARDIS' console at that moment were the Old Girl's equivalent of laughter. She really was going to try though. She didn't care what the Old Co- Girl said.

Maisie smiled slightly as she said, "Alright, I guess I'll give you another chance then. It seemed like you were basically a good person deep down, and you and the Doctor did save my life. Now I'm really hoping that you can do it once again."

The Doctor closed the door to the TARDIS behind her as she stepped out of it and said, "So what's wrong? What's got you so upset, Train Girl?"

"Train Girl?" Maisie said in amusement.

"You'll just have to overlook me, Maisie. I like to give people cute little nicknames sometimes. I'll try not to call you that anymore," The Doctor said with a grimace.

That had been Clara at work again. Apparently she was much more of an influence on this new version of her than she had thought. Then again she probably should have realized that when she had raiding Clara's closet for her newest look which was the exact same thing that Clara had worn when she had fought the Boneless.

She couldn't help it. She had really liked that jacket.

"It's okay. I'm so upset right now I don't care if you call me Fred as long as you help me," Maisie said.

The Doctor looked at her in surprise as Maisie asked, "What?"

"It's nothing. I just had a friend who I called that once. She was a woman too. She's gone now though," The Doctor said sadly.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories. It was just a name that popped into my head is all," Maisie said apologetically.

"Don't worry about it. So are you ever going to get around to telling me what's going on or are we going to both stand here until one of us dies of old age," The Doctor said.

Then she frowned as she said, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. Things like that just seem to slip out sometimes when I get worried or impatient about something."

Maisie smiled and nodded accepting her apology as she said, "Well, you're not going to believe this, but it's all very similar to what happened before the last time that we met. It's almost as if history is repeating itself, Clara. There's an Egyptian sarcophagus on board this ship as well. I've seen it in the storage area. I understandably became distraught about it as soon as I saw it when I first come onboard this ship, and that feeling didn't get any better when the killings began either. Suddenly two people in a row suddenly dropped dead for no reason. I tried to tell the Captain of the ship to toss that thing overboard because it was causing the murders, but he thinks that I'm mad. He doesn't even believe that there's anything going on. He's an idiot!"

The Doctor laughed as she said, "You've been exposed to a whole new world, Maisie. That's how you know to accept things that others just dismiss offhand. You know that there are monsters out there even when everyone else wants to hide their heads in the sand about them."

Maisie smiled as she said, "Yes, I suppose you're right. I don't know whether to thank you and the Doctor for that or slap both of your faces."

"Please no slapping, Maisie. I've had enough of that to last the rest of my lives mostly from people's mothers," The Doctor said.

"What?" Maisie said in confusion.

"Never mind. Lead me to this sarcophagus of yours," The Doctor said.

"I'm afraid that it's locked now, Doctor. I think that the Captain did it to make sure that I didn't toss it overboard myself because I probably would have," Maisie said with a smile.

The Doctor smiled at her because it seemed as if Maisie was stronger now than she had been the last time that she had met her. Maybe she had always been strong though and the death of her grandmother had just been a weak point for her. Everyone had points in their life when they were at their lowest after all and didn't act anything like their usual selves. She should know that better than anyone. Again Mars returned to mind.

"Then it's a good thing that I brought this along then, isn't it, Train Girl?" The Doctor said with a huge smile on her face as she took her brand new sonic screwdriver out of her jacket pocket.

Its pink light glowed as she began to scan the area with it and frowned as she said, "There's definitely technology that doesn't belong in this century onboard. In fact, there are two very different types of alien technology here. One of them looks vaguely familiar but I can't quite place it and the other . . . Oh, my stars!"

The Doctor began to run towards the storage area now as fast as she could leaving Maisie having to struggle to keep up with her as she shouted, "Clara, what is it? What did you find? What is that thing anyway?"

"No time to explain! Just keep behind me!" The Doctor shouted over her shoulder.

The Doctor now stood in front of the storage room door within moments and quickly opened it with her sonic to reveal not only the sarcophagus and various other cargo but also . . . a Dalek!

Maisie gasped in fear behind the Doctor as she said, "Is that . . . ?"

"Yes, a Dalek," The Doctor said in a voice filled with scorn.

The Dalek didn't fire on her amazingly enough. It just stood there staring at her as if it didn't know what to do.

"Well, what are you waiting for, Pepper Pot? An engraved invitation? Come on then. Do your best to try to exterminate me. That is what you do isn't it?" The Doctor said in anger.

"Hey! Don't encourage it!" Maisie protested.

The Doctor seemed to come back to her senses then as she said, 'I'm sorry, Maisie. I won't let it hurt you, okay?"

"Y- Yeah, sure," Maisie said clearly not believing her.

"YOU . . . HAVE CHANGED YOUR FORM ONCE AGAIN JUST AS OUR RECORDS SAY THAT YOU CAN. IT IS STILL YOU THOUGH. YOU ARE THE PREDATOR OF THE DALEKS. YOU ARE THE DOCTOR?" The Dalek said that last sentence almost as if it was a question.

"Yes, I am the Doctor. Don't let the extremely cute face and outstanding fashion sense, for once, of this body fool you. I don't know what you're up to here, but I'm about to end it all right now," The Doctor said.

"I AM NOT HERE TO FIGHT YOU OR THE HUMANS ONBOARD THIS SHIP. I CAME HERE TO KILL A MUCH MORE DANGEROUS ENEMY. I AM HERE TO EXTERMINATE THE DALEKS," The Dalek said.

"What?" The Doctor said in surprise.

"WE HAVE MET BEFORE, DOCTOR. DON'T YOU REMEMBER? WE SHARED MEMORIES TOGETHER. YOU SHOWED ME BEAUTY . . . AND HATRED," The Dalek said.

The Doctor smiled as she said, "Rusty?"

"THAT IS WHAT YOU CALLED ME, BUT I DON'T LIKE THAT NAME. DALEKS DON'T HAVE NAMES," Rusty said.

"Tell that to the Cult of Skaro, Rusty. Yes, I remember you now. You wanted to kill all of the Daleks in the universe. That wasn't what I meant to teach you. I never meant to just transfer your hate to someone else. I wanted to get rid of it completely," The Doctor said with regret in her voice.

"I AM USING MY HATRED FOR A POSITIVE PURPOSE THOUGH, DOCTOR, JUST AS YOU DO. I AM SAVING LIVES JUST AS YOU DO. I SEE LIFE AS BEING PRECIOUS AND SOMETHING WORTH FIGHTING FOR JUST AS YOU DO. WAS I WRONG? WAS THAT NOT THE LESSON THAT YOU WISHED TO TEACH ME?" Rusty asked.

The Doctor smiled at him as she said, "Maybe you should be the one teaching me a few things, Dalek Boy."

"So he's alright then? He's a . . . friend of yours?" Maisie asked nervously from behind her.

"I WILL NOT EXTERMINATE YOU, HUMAN," Rusty said in what almost sounded like a reassuring tone.

Maisie nodded as she said, "Good. I'm glad that we've gotten that cleared up then."

She still wouldn't come out from behind the Doctor though despite that. In fact, she was grabbing the Time Lady's arm and digging her nails into it so tightly that she was starting to cut off the circulation in it.

"Don't worry, Train Girl. I've got your back. I'll always have your back. I swear it," The Doctor said in a reassuring voice and meant it because the part of her that had been Clara showed her just how terrifying it felt for humans to suddenly be left behind.

Maisie's grip relaxed somewhat now as she nodded and smiled at her. The Doctor smiled because she had gotten that sense of trust that Chinny used to be able to inspire in people back once more. Now she just had to make sure not to abuse it.

"You never did tell me why you were here, Rusty. I don't sense any other Daleks but you here. There is some strange alien tech in that sarcophagus though that seems to be very familiar to me, but I can't quite place it. It's the memory cells. They start going when you get to be my age, you know?" The Doctor said with a grin.

"Your age? You look like you're the same age as me," Maisie said in confusion.

Both the Doctor and Rusty ignored her as Rusty said, "EVERYONE ON THIS SHIP IS IN TERRIBLE DANGER. I'VE TRIED TO STOP IT BUT THERE IS ONLY SO MUCH THAT I CAN DO. I CAN'T STOP THE ARK FROM OPENING, AND ITS PROTECTOR CONTINUES TO ELUDE ME AS IT SLOWLY KILLS EVERYONE ON THIS SHIP."

"What are you talking about? Ark? Protector?" Maisie asked in confusion.

"You're saying that there's something evil in this thing that's going to be let out soon? Is that it? Yes, that is it isn't it? It has to be. Its protector, whoever or whatever that is, is what's killing people and making it look like natural deaths. Soon though it will change tactics once it gets bolder and start killing them openly," The Doctor said.

Maisie's eyes widened in realization now as she said, "This protector is killing people in order to take over this ship. It wants to kill us all and then take the sarcophagus somewhere else then where it was originally planned to go so that whatever's in it can be freed there. Am I right? Is that it?"

The Doctor smiled as she said, "Go to the head of the class, Train Girl. You've got it. Now I just need to figure out what the protector is and what's in that sarcophagus that's so bloody important that its worth two people's lives."

"THE PROTECTOR COULD BE ANY OF THE CREW. I'VE NEVER BEEN ABLE TO DETERMINE WHO. IT COULD EVEN BE EITHER OF YOU," Rusty said.

Maisie shook her head vehemently as she said, "Well, it's not me. I've been trying to destroy this stupid thing not protect it."

"Or at least you think that you have anyway," The Doctor said as she suddenly turned to face Maisie with a cold look on her face.

"Clara, you're scaring me. What is that look about?" Maisie said.

The Doctor now pointed her sonic screwdriver at the sarcophagus as she said, "I think that I've finally gotten this all figured out now, and if I'm right then I'm probably about to destroy your life. If so, then I'm so sorry, Maisie."

"What? What are you talking about?" Maisie said as she began to get upset now.

The Doctor began to use her sonic on the sarcophagus and it began to start smoking and developing cracks all along it as Rusty said in an amazed tone, "YOU HAVE MANAGED TO DO WHAT I COULDN'T, DOCTOR. YOU'RE STARTING THE SELF-DESTRUCT SEQUENCE."

"It helps when you're as good a hacker as Clara Oswald," The Doctor said with a smile.

"Clara, stop. I don't know why but I have a feeling that you need to stop. Right now!" Maisie said in a panicked voice.

"Why, Maisie? Is it because I'm finally onto something now? You brought me here to trick me into opening this for you didn't you? You had no idea that Rusty was here to foil your plan though did you? Luckily for me he was tracking this so that it could never be used or I might not have found out in time what you were really up to," The Doctor said.

"I . . . don't understand," Maisie said.

The Doctor looked at her sympathetically as she said, "I know you don't but part of you does. Don't you?"

Maisie suddenly stiffened now as a Dalek eye stalk came out of her head and a gun stick came out of her hand. She smiled malevolently as she pointed the gun stick at the Doctor.

"Good work, Time Lady. So you finally figured it out at last," The Dalek puppet that used to be Maisie said.

"Yes, with a little help from good old Rusty here. Nice job, Rusty. This is a Genesis Ark, isn't it? I bet it's just filled to the brim with Daleks too. So where are you taking it to, eh? Are you going to redirect this ship to Earth and perform a sneak attack on them with it? I'm right, aren't I?" The Doctor said with a smug smile on her face.

Then she frowned as she said, "I'm just as bad as Chinny and the Old Man with the arrogant bit. I've got to work on that."

"Yes, you're right, Doctor. I was put on board as the Ark's protector until I could safely deliver it to Earth for the invasion to begin. I was going to kill everyone in order to accomplish that goal and then you came aboard. The Ark was pre-programmed to only open when we had reached the Earth's coordinates, but I was sure that I could trick you into opening it early so that the Dalek masters could come out and destroy everyone on board. It would have definitely made my job that much easier," Maisie said.

"Yeah, well I kind of have a habit of making things harder on everyone not easier, Train Girl. I don't think it's one that I'm going to be breaking anytime soon. The Ark is doing a countdown even as we speak. Soon it's going to harmlessly self-destruct and take all of its inhabitants with it. You've failed so you might as well give Maisie her life back and get out of her. I won't ask again. I'm going to give you this one chance, and then I'm going to destroy you," The Doctor said in a hard voice.

Maisie laughed as she said, "Oh, Doctor, you're so wonderfully naïve, but then you always were. Did you really think that it was a mere coincidence that Maisie was the one that was picked to be the Ark's protector or that she knew your nickname for your precious Romana?"

"What?" The Doctor said in surprise.

"I know you, Doctor. I knew that you would be along sooner or later to stop this. You just can't help yourself. You have to interfere especially when I create a problem for you to solve in order to lure you into a trap. That is what this is in case you haven't figured it out yet. It's my little gift for you all wrapped up in a neat little bow for you to solve. That's why I used Dalek technology to make dear sweet Maisie here into one of their puppets and stole one of their Arks that was leftover from the Time War and reprogrammed it for my own purposes. You've always been far too trusting of your precious humans, especially those that you've saved before, and this time it's going to cost you," Maisie said in a voice and manner that were definitely not those of a Dalek or her own.

"WHAT IS HAPPENING? THAT ISN'T THE PUPPET SPEAKING," Rusty said.

"I know. You'd know her as the Master, but these days it's Missy, isn't it? Or did you change it again? Is it Cackling Mad Girl now? Or maybe it's Scary Poppins? That suits you far better I think," The Doctor said.

"Hello, dear. Oh, I so wish that I was there in person to see the look on your face in a minute when you realize just how stupid that you've been. As it is, I can only talk to you through this worthless human's mouth thanks to this inferior Dalek technology. It's a very poor substitute for the real thing I'm afraid, but I had to use it in order to fool you as to just who your real enemy was just as I used a perception filter to hide the true origin of the Dalek technology in the Ark from you. Do you feel it yet? It should be happening any moment now," Missy said.

The Doctor started to scream in pain as Missy started to laugh and said, "That pain that you're feeling is from the poison that was in Maisie's nails. The very same poison that she put into your bloodstream as her fingers dug into your unprotected flesh while she grabbed your arm so tightly when she stood behind you. You never even noticed did you? Good bye, Doctor. Soon you and your little Dalek playmate will be dead, and the Ark's countdown will be halted by my puppet. Then it will proceed to Earth and completely wipe all of you precious humans out with its precious cargo right on schedule. Ta ta!"

The Doctor now fell to her knees as her entire body was filled with absolute agony.

"YOU WILL NOT STOP THE COUNTDOWN," Rusty said as he trained his gun stick on Maisie.

"Oh, but I will. Maisie, destroy him and then proceed with the rest of the plan," Missy ordered.

Maisie and Rusty began to trade fire with one another even as the Doctor hit the floor and lay there feeling as though she were dying as she said, "Oh, great. It looks like I'm going to go down as the shortest lived incarnation of me ever."

"Not if I can help it," A voice said from somewhere nearby

Another gun started to enter the fight between Rusty and Maisie as three sets of gunfire continuously went off now.

The Doctor could now see that it was Journey Blue, the young soldier who the Old Man had refused to take along with him.

"Okay, I can admit when I'm wrong," The Doctor said as she smiled at Journey as she helped Rusty put Maisie on the defensive.

The Doctor was sure that that was the end of it all. She was about to find out that she was so wrong though as a human voice said, "You will be exterminated."

She looked up to see a man towering over her. A man that was also a Dalek puppet and who was currently pointing a gun stick at her.

"Of course. The Captain was turned into a puppet too. Someone had to know how to fly the ship after all and Maisie didn't. Stupid, Souffle Girl! Just stupid!" The Doctor said in a voice that was growing weaker and weaker by the moment now.

"You are the Doctor. Exterminate!" The Captain said as he fired at her.

**Next: Well, this is certainly a bad situation isn't it? Will Journey and Rusty be able to stop both Dalek puppets before they reverse the countdown? Will they be able to save the Doctor from both the Captain and the poison currently surging through her bloodstream? What about Maisie? Is she lost forever? All of this will be answered next time. I really hope that you've enjoyed this new addition to the story.**


	3. An All New Era Begins

CHAPTER 3

I do not own Doctor Who and I am making no profit off of this.

Thank you for all of your favorites, follows, and reviews!

AN ALL NEW ERA BEGINS

The Doctor expected to either die or regenerate again (which was just as good as dying) in the very next moment as the Captain fired on her. Then to her absolute surprise the Captain was suddenly shot by multiple bursts of rapid blaster fire which luckily knocked the aim of his shot off and away from her. A piece of luggage wound up being disintegrated instead of the Doctor as the Captain fell to the ground with an enormous thud.

The Doctor turned her head to see Journey Blue smiling at her as she said, "Be sure and tell the Old Man that I didn't kill him. Those were stun blasts. When the Doctor just left me there like I was nothing, I vowed to change my life and I did. I left and went off to find Rusty. The two of us actually became a good team together. He's my closest friend now if you can believe that, Clara. We've spent the last year traveling across the galaxy helping people here and there that no one else either can or will help. We've saved quite a few lives together, and I'm proud of that. I just wanted him to know that even though he probably won't believe anything good about a soldier since he seemed to have such a problem with them before."

"Not anymore," The Doctor said with a weak smile.

"Are you alright?" Journey asked with concern as she noticed that the Doctor looked incredibly pale and was sweating profusely.

"No, I'm dying, Soldier Girl. Maisie poisoned me with something under her nails," The Doctor said as she struggled to keep her head up.

Journey looked at her in shock as she said, "I'm so sorry. Is there anything that I can do for you?"

"JOURNEY, I REQUIRE YOUR ASSISTANCE. THE PUPPET IS SURPRISINGLY STRONG. THE RENEGADE TIME LORD HAS REWRITTEN DALEK TECHNOLOGY AND STRENGTHENED IT SO THAT SHE IS FAR MORE POWERFUL THAN A PUPPET SHOULD BE. I DO NOT THINK THAT I CAN STOP HER ALONE," Rusty said.

"You can admit that?" Journey asked with a small smile.

"I AM A NEW TYPE OF DALEK. I NO LONGER THINK OF ANYTHING DALEK AS BEING SUPERIOR. DALEKS ARE THE ENEMY AND NOTHING ABOUT THEM IS TO BE PRAISED IN ANY WAY," Rusty said.

"I never thought I'd ever live to hear that although Sec said something similar once. Good old Sec," The Doctor said in a weak voice as she somehow still managed to smile despite her ever weakening condition.

"She's dying. I need to help her. Find out everything that you can about the poison that the puppet put into her," Journey ordered.

"I OBEY," Rusty said as he began to scan Maisie's fingernails even as he continued to fight with her.

"She's not just a puppet," The Doctor said in a voice barely above a whisper as she finally became so weak that she had to lie down now.

"What?" Journey asked as she continued to look at her with worried eyes.

"She's not just a puppet. Her name is Maisie and she didn't ask for any of this. Please try to help her and give her back her life if you can. She's already suffered enough believe me. It seems that I'm still ruining people's lives even at the end," The Doctor said in a deeply troubled voice.

"This isn't your fault, Clara. You need to worry about yourself now not her. We'll save her if we can. Rusty, hurry up with that analysis!" Journey promised as she looked at Rusty anxiously.

"I AM ATTEMPTING TO FIGHT AND ANALYZE AT THE SAME TIME. SOME ASSISTANCE WOULD BE APPRECIATED IF YOU WISH TO HAVE THINGS DONE FASTER," Rusty said in an aggravated voice.

"Fine," Journey said as she shot Maisie several times with her gun.

Maisie started to stagger but somehow kept moving anyway despite that as she laughed weakly and said, "Sorry, but I'm made of much sterner stuff than that, human. I don't go down so easily. I will carry out my purpose and make your home world into a desolate graveyard very soon now, and there's nothing that you can do to stop me."

The Doctor coughed loudly then as she said, "The poison has spread to my lungs now. They're shutting down. Wonderful. Journey, I'm sorry."

"For what?" Journey asked in confusion.

"For not taking you along with me when I should have. Maybe you could have helped keep me from making many of the mistakes that I made later on. Maybe that's what I was sent to you for in the first place," The Doctor admitted.

"Doctor? How though? I've seen you and Clara together. You can't be her," Journey asked in disbelief.

"It's a long story that I'm afraid that I'll never get to tell now. Journey, take this," The Doctor said as she gave her the key to the TARDIS.

"Is this what I think it is?" Journey said in surprise.

"Yes, it's the key to my ship. Take it and use it to continue your adventures with Rusty. The Old Cow might not like Rusty at first because he's a Dalek, but she'll soon get used to him so don't worry about that," The Doctor said with a warm smile.

"I'm not taking this," Journey said as she refused the key.

"You'll help so many people with her all throughout time and space, Journey. If you're worried that you're not up to the challenge, then don't. I believe in you. You're a good woman which is more than I ever was," The Doctor said.

Journey smiled even as she said, "As much as I love hearing you say that, Doctor, I'm still not accepting that key. I'm not accepting it because we're going to find a way to save you, and then you're going to be the one using the TARDIS to save people. Somehow I think that's the way it should be."

"It's too late, Journey. I know what Missy used on me now. The symptoms are just like before when River used it on me. It's the poison of the Judas tree. It kills Time Lords without the possibility of regeneration," The Doctor whispered to Journey.

"Don't worry. Rusty has all of the knowledge of the Dalek Net at his disposal. He'll find the cure in no time," Journey reassured her.

"There is no cure," The Doctor said as she started to gasp for breath as one of her lungs finally gave out.

"You just said that you survived it before though," Journey said in exasperation.

"I did because I had someone around to sacrifice all of their lives to bring me back to life after I died from it," The Doctor said.

"Another Time Lord like you and Missy?" Journey asked.

The Doctor looked surprised which made Journey laugh as she said, "Rusty told me all about your race and about you. He left out the fact that you could become female though. That one was definitely a surprise."

"River's gone now though and somehow I don't think that Missy will help," The Doctor said.

"JOURNEY, FIGHT THE PUPPET WHILE I HELP THE DOCTOR," Rusty said.

"You have a cure?" Journey asked hopefully.

"There is no cure," The Doctor said stubbornly.

"NOT ONE KNOWN TO THE TIME LORDS, NO. THE DALEKS HOWEVER DID FIND A CURE," Rusty said.

"Why would the Daleks find a cure to a poison that could kill Time Lords? I would have figured that would be the last thing that they would want to do, Dalek Boy," The Doctor asked in disbelief.

"DURING THE TIME WAR, SEVERAL TIME LORDS TOOK CONCENTRATED DOSES OF THAT POISON IN ORDER TO AVOID BEING TAKEN CAPTIVE BY US. THEREFORE WE CAME UP WITH A WAY AROUND THIS. EVEN DEATH WASN'T ALLOWED TO SAVE THEM FROM US," Rusty said.

"Yes, yet another example of that incredible generosity of spirit that you pepper pots are famous for throughout the universe. Who knew that same ruthlessness would someday wind up saving the Daleks' worst enemy instead?" The Doctor said smugly.

"I LIKE THE IRONY IN THAT TOO," Rusty said in a conspiratorial tone.

Then a hatch opened in his casing and a small vial came out of it.

"DOCTOR, I HAVE A SMALL AMOUNT OF THE ANTIDOTE THAT WAS GIVEN TO ME THE DAY THAT I RECEIVED MY CASING. IT WAS ALWAYS A POSSIBILITY THAT ANY OF US MIGHT COME ACROSS YOU AFTER ALL. TAKE IT," Rusty said.

The Doctor slowly forced herself to sit up enough to be able to grab the vial and drink it. She shuddered and grimaced even as she already began to feel better.

"Congratulations. I think I may have finally found something that tastes even worse than my soufflés, Dalek Boy. This could be used to make a goat gag. What is in this stuff anyway?" The Doctor said with a slight smile.

"YOU DON'T WANTTO KNOW. SIT THERE AND RECOVER WHILE I HELP JOURNEY," Rusty said as he now flew off to join Journey in the fight against Maisie.

"How can one Dalek puppet be holding off a full Dalek and a trained soldier at the same time? What did you do to her, Koschei?" The Doctor said in a voice filled with sorrow as she slowly got to her feet while the strength continued to slowly return to her body.

She now slowly made her way to the Captain and scanned him with her sonic as she said with a horrified look, "You're not just a puppet are you? You're being transformed into some kind of new half-human, half-Dalek hybrid while all of your emotions are being slowly stripped away from you forever. It's like some kind of really messed-up cross between the puppets and the Robomen. It looks like you've been making some new recipes of your own lately, Missy. I'd rather that you had been making soufflés instead."

The Doctor fiddled around with the settings on her sonic as she tried to think of a way of reversing the process or at least of halting it before it went any further. Then she smiled as she came up with a solution that she was almost certain would work.

Either that or it would only make things worse.

"If this goes wrong, we are so dead but so is the Earth if I can't free the Captain. If I can't keep Maisie from stopping the countdown, I'll need him around to order the crew of this ship to reverse course before it's too late," The Doctor said to herself as she pulled a vial of her own out of one of the pockets of her coat.

"Doctor, what are you doing?" Journey asked as she saw her bending over the Captain with the vial.

"Either saving us or making things ten times worse. Cross your fingers, Journey, Rusty. Well, you just cross whatever you can, Dalek Boy. As Chinny used to say, Geronimo!" The Doctor said as she emptied part of the vial into the Captain's mouth.

Then she stood back while the Captain's body began to jerk and spasm as she said, "That reminds me. I don't have a catchphrase yet. I really need to come up with something for this new incarnation and hopefully something better than Geronimo. It would have to be better than the Old Man's catchphrase though. He didn't even have one unless you count 'Shut up' as a catchphrase."

"Doctor, will you stop babbling and tell us what's going on?" Journey asked in an irritated voice.

The Doctor's eyes went wide as she said, "You're right. I am babbling aren't I? I'm just as bad as Chinny or Matchstick Man ever were! I am really going to have to watch out for that."

Then she smiled at Journey as she said, "Or rather you are."

Journey's eyes filled with joy as she said, "You mean . . ."

"If we make it through the day alive, I want you and Rusty to come traveling with me. If you even still want to that is because I really couldn't blame you if you didn't," The Doctor said with some trepidation.

"That depends," Journey said with a worried look on her face.

"Depends on what?" The Doctor asked.

"On whatever you just did to the Captain. Look!" Journey said as she pointed to the Captain who was now starting to slowly change form as parts of him became like a Cyberman and some like a Dalek.

"I released some of Missy's Cyber-pollen into his body. It could turn him into a Cyberman or worse yet into a Cyber-Dalek. Not even I've ever faced anything like that. If I'm right though, Soldier Girl, oh, if I'm right . . ." The Doctor said as she waited in breathless anticipation while the Captain's body continued to constantly shift and change in front of her.

"Yes, if you're right what? Care to finish that sentence, Doctor? " Journey said in amusement as she found that she liked this new Doctor's style already.

The Doctor put a finger to her lips as she said with a smile, "Watch."

The Captain suddenly screamed in agony and then his Dalek eyestalk and gunstick fell off and the parts of his body that had become like a Cyberman's rapidly returned to normal once more. In a matter of moments, he looked completely human again.

The Doctor smiled in triumph as she said, "Oswald for the win! Tell me how cool I am, Journey!"

Journey laughed as she said, "Well, I still don't know really know what happened yet so I can't do that until I do, can I?"

"I was hoping that the Cyber-pollen and the Dalek nanotech would fight it out for control of the Captain's body and that both of them would be so evenly matched that they would wind up cancelling each other out and destroying one another in the process. It looks like I was right. Everyone gets a piece of soufflé in celebration!" The Doctor said happily.

"ENOUGH FRIVOLITY! DOCTOR, IF YOU HAVE A WAY TO STOP THIS PUPPET, PLEASE DO SO RIGHT NOW," Rusty said in an aggravated voice.

"Well, someone's certainly grouchy today, aren't they? Maybe I should call you Grumpy instead of Rusty from now. Grumpy the Dalek," The Doctor said with a mischievous smile.

"Don't pay attention to him. He's always like that," Journey said.

"Both of you need to keep Maisie busy for a minute," The Doctor whispered to Journey who nodded.

Journey and Rusty began to both attack Maisie in unison once again as the Doctor slowly came up behind her. Maisie was so busy paying attention to them that she didn't notice the Doctor until it was too late.

The Doctor suddenly grabbed Maisie in a head lock and poured the rest of the Cyber-pollen down her throat. Maisie screamed in soul wrenching pain while the Doctor quickly let her go as she began to change back and forth exactly like the Captain had earlier.

"What did you do to me? I trusted you. You said that you had my back," Maisie said in tears as she continued to change.

"It's going to be alright, Maisie. Any minute now you're going to be completely human again just like the Captain," The Doctor said.

"Is this the worst that the pain is going to get?" Maisie said through gritted teeth.

"Yep, you've already gone through the worst of it already," The Doctor said.

Maisie suddenly had her eyes go back into her head as she screamed so loudly that it almost burst everyone's eardrums. Then she dropped over and hit the floor hard as she was instantly knocked cold.

"Sorry, Maisie. I thought it would be better if you didn't know the truth. Well, there goes that resolution. I must have lasted almost an hour. I swear that I'll try to go longer between lies the next time though," The Doctor said in a hopeful tone.

"Well, at least you're working on it. Is she going to be alright?" Journey said.

The Doctor scanned Maisie and smiled as she said, "Yeah, she's going to be just fine. She just needs a little rest for a while. Now that both of the puppets have been cured I just have one last thing to take care of before this is all over. Welll, really I've already done it, but it doesn't hurt to check that everything's going as it should."

As the Doctor scanned the Ark with her sonic, Journey asked, "Why did you just draw your L's out like that for?"

"I did? Oh, I must have been channeling a little bit of Matchstick Man for a minute there. You'll have to ignore it. If I start shouting out 'Allons-y!' though, just slap me," The Doctor said with a chuckle.

"Oh, my stars!" The Doctor shouted as she saw the readings on the Ark suddenly change on the sonic.

"What is it?" Journey asked.

"Oh, my giddy Aunt!" The Doctor said as she began to look panicked.

"Will someone please tell me what's going on?" Journey said.

It was Rusty who answered instead though as he said, "THE SELF-DESTRUCT HAS BEEN REVERSED FROM THE INSIDE. THE ARK IS OPENING."

"It's Missy. She's cheating and opening it early by remote control. She must be," The Doctor said.

Then she spun around towards Rusty and Journey as she shouted, "You two, help me move the Ark into the TARDIS! Now!"

The three of them picked the Ark up and ran towards the TARDIS even as it began to open up further and further by the moment. The Doctor began to fear that they wouldn't make it in time, and then she'd be faced with who knew how many Daleks in a matter of moments.

They would all be massacred immediately.

For once though, the universe was on the Doctor's side as she managed to get the Ark inside the TARDIS. She quickly entered in new coordinates and dematerialized as fast as she could.

The TARDIS vanished just as Maisie woke up and sighed. The Captain was now awake as well and said in a shocked voice, "Was any of that real or did I just imagine being turned into a Dalek?"

"I'm afraid it was, yes. Welcome to a whole new world, Captain. You've just become a part of the club," Maisie said sadly.

"Club? What club?" The Captain asked confused.

"The one full of people whose lives have been completely changed by the Doctor forever, and who have now been left behind to face the consequences . . . alone," Maisie said.

The two of them embraced then because they were the only ones who could possibly know how the other one felt at that moment. The aftermath of an encounter with the Doctor was definitely a situation that no one else would be able to understand unless they had gone through it themselves, and Maisie had already gone through it twice now.

"Am I interrupting something, Train Girl?" A familiar voice suddenly said.

Maisie and the Captain separated and she turned to see an apologetic looking Doctor watching her while leaning against the TARDIS.

"I threw the Ark into the nearest supernova just as it was about to completely open up. Those Daleks definitely won't be getting out of that. They might find themselves wishing that they had stayed in the Ark. Rusty was overjoyed. I've never seen a Dalek cheer before. I think he's been hanging around Journey too long. So . . . how are you?"

She wiped the tears from her eyes and took a moment to compose herself before finally speaking.

"I'm fine," Maisie said in a jittery voice.

"You don't look it. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for lying to you and for everything else that you've been through here today. Missy only did this to you because of me," The Doctor said with a head hung low in shame.

"I don't blame you. I blame her. You saved me . . . again," Maisie said gratefully.

The Doctor nodded but didn't smile as she asked, "So what are you going to do next?"

Maisie took a deep breath before saying, "I don't know. To be honest, I haven't really been able to pick up the pieces of my life ever since you left the first time. I just can't get over it all. You can't see things like that and not be affected by them, can you? How do you go back to a normal life after that?"

The Doctor nodded as she said, "Well, I could offer you an alternative to that."

Maisie smiled as she said, "You mean you want me to travel with you? What could I possibly offer you? I'm not a puppet anymore. I'm just an ordinary person and you already have a soldier and a Dalek with you."

"I need an ordinary person too though. I always do, Maisie. I need someone who isn't a part of my world so that they can tell me when I'm going too far or when I've accidentally been rude or just to keep me in line by constantly reminding of exactly how wrong that I can be sometimes. I need a little taste of humility every once in a while to keep me in check. Not that I'm wrong very often of course," The Doctor said with a smug grin.

"Of course you're not. You're practically perfect in every way," Maisie said sarcastically.

"See? You're already doing it, Train Girl. I need that in order to keep me in line," The Doctor said with a chuckle.

"What do I get out of it if I do go?" Maisie asked.

"You get the greatest gift of all: a new freshly baked souffle every day," The Doctor said with a giggle.

Maisie shook her head as she said, "No, I want much more than that. How about you take me on a trip back in time? I always liked history. Could I visit the real nineteen twenties?"

"Maisie, I can not only take you there I can also let you meet Agatha Christie herself. Of course she won't remember me because she completely lost her memory of when we met before. Then again she'd never believe that it was really me anyway so I guess it's just as well," The Doctor said.

"Doctor, stop babbling," Maisie said as she shook her head at her.

"Sorry, that's another bad habit that I'm going to break. I swear I will. I'm not going to lie or babble from now on," The Doctor said firmly.

"How long do you think that you'll keep that promise, Souffle Girl?" Journey asked as she poked her head out of the TARDIS.

"I PREDICT THAT SHE WILL BREAK BOTH VOWS WITHIN THE HOUR," Rusty said.

"I say that she does in the next ten minutes," Journey said.

"You're both being very hard on her. She's trying to quit," Maisie said.

"Thank you, Train Girl," The Doctor said with an appreciative smile.

Maisie then smiled evilly as she said, "I say that she at least lasts twenty minutes."

"You're on," Journey said as she put an arm around her and led her inside the TARDIS.

"I think she'll fit in just fine don't you, Rusty?" The Doctor said as she gestured for Rusty to get inside ahead of her.

"SHE'LL FIT IN BETTER THAN I WILL. AT LEAST SHE CAN ACTUALLY GET THROUGH THE DOORS INSIDE. I'M TRAPPED IN THE CONSOLE ROOM," Rusty complained.

"Yeah, I'm having a little trouble convincing the Old C- Girl to trust you, Rusty. Don't worry. She'll widen the doorways soon enough though I'm sure. Would you like a soufflé as a consolation prize until then?" The Doctor asked.

"NO, I'D RATHER NOT DIE JUST YET, DOCTOR. I HAVE MANY MORE DALEKS LEFT TO EXTERMINATE," Rusty said as he went inside the TARDIS.

"What do you know? A Dalek with a sense of humor. Now I really have seen everything," The Doctor said.

"I WAS BEING COMPLETELY SERIOUS," Rusty said.

"Oh, shut up," The Doctor said with a warm smile as she went inside and closed the doors.

The TARDIS dematerialized a minute later leaving the Captain standing there in disbelief once again. That was when one of his crew appeared and found him just staring ahead with a blank expression on his face.

"Is anything the matter, Sir?" The crewman asked.

"No, everything's just fine. Nothing happened at all whatsoever. What made you think that it did?" The Captain said as he started to leave the storage area.

"It's just that you were saying something about a doctor as I came in. Are you feeling ill, sir?" The crewman asked.

"Doctor? What doctor? Doctor who? I'm not in need of any doctor and just you remember that," The Captain said just a little too quickly.

"Sir, what happened to the sarcophagus?" The crewman asked.

"What sarcophagus? I think that it's you who needs the doctor," The Captain asked as he finally left the storage area and his bewildered crewman behind.

"Oh, don't worry about that cargo. It's already been picked up," A woman dressed like a nanny said as she suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"Where did you come from, Miss? Are you one of the passengers?" The crewman asked.

"Of course I am. You just forgot about me I'm sure because I look so ordinary and nondescript. You know I would have really liked to have destroyed the Earth, but I guess my consolation prize will just have to do instead. The Doctor was so intent on stopping my plan against the Earth that she never even thought that I might have had a trap within a trap waiting for all along, and it just succeeded brilliantly! Oh, I'm so going to enjoy the look on her face when she finally finds out what it was. I just wish that I had more of a receptive audience than you to tell about it because you have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about," Missy said with a frown.

"Are you quite well, Miss? There seems to be some kind of illness going around. I think that my Captain has it. Do you need a doctor?" The crewman asked.

Missy smiled as she said, "Why, yes! Yes, I do and I'm definitely going to get one sooner or later. You can bet on that."

"Yes, Miss," The crewman said as he looked at her blankly.

"I should probably kill you but I don't want to take a chance on her finding out that I came back here. I had to in order to make sure that everything happened as it should have. She doesn't need to know that though, and that's why you're going to just forgot all about me, aren't you?" Missy said.

"Yes, I'll . . . forget," The crewman said in a distant voice.

"That's right. Now you just go to sleep and when you wake up, I'll have never been here at all, will I?" Missy said with a smile as the crewman collapsed to the floor asleep.

"Soon, Doctor. Very soon now we'll meet again, and then you'll wish that you had joined me when I change your entire life forever!" Missy said with mocking laughter as she suddenly teleported away.

**Next: An all new adventure begins as the Doctor and her new crew comes across an old enemy of hers who can use words themselves as weapons. Can the Doctor find a way to save the human race or will they find out the hard way that words definitely can hurt you? **


	4. The Word of the Day is Revenge

CHAPTER 4

I do not own Doctor Who, Big Finish, or Harry Potter and I am making no profit off of this.

Thank you for all of your favorites, follows, and reviews!

THE WORD OF THE DAY IS REVENGE

The Doctor had been silent for so long now that Maisie and Journey were starting to think that something was wrong. This new version of the Doctor usually didn't stop talking for longer than five seconds at a time so for her to suddenly become quiet out of the blue like this was more than a bit worrying to both of them. Then again nether of them really knew the Doctor that well just yet so maybe this was completely normal for her.

"WHY ARE YOU TWO STARING AT THE DOCTOR SO INTENTLY FOR?" Rusty asked as he glided up to them.

"We're just wondering if she's upset or bothered about something. She usually talks a mile a minute. Don't you think that her suddenly going into silent mode is weird?" Maisie asked.

"SHE IS A TIME LORD. NO ONE COMPLETELY UNDERSTANDS HOW THE MINDS OF TIME LORDS WORK NOT EVEN THE DALEKS, AND THIS PARTICULAR TIME LORD IS THE MOST MYSTERIOUS AND UNPREDICTABLE ONE OF THEM ALL. NOT EVEN THE DOCTOR'S OWN PEOPLE EVER REALLY UNDERSTOOD HER. THE DALEKS WERE NEVER ABLE TO SUCCESSFULLY PREDICT WHAT SHE WOULD DO EITHER. THEY WERE ALMOST CERTAIN THAT THE DOCTOR WASN'T EVEN SURE OF THAT HERSELF MOST OF THE TIME. I SAY HER BUT SHE WAS ACTUALLY MALE UNTIL RECENTLY OF COURSE," Rusty said.

"It still feels strange to think of the Doctor as a her even though we've been traveling with her for almost a week now. I get the feeling that it's no big deal for her though," Maisie said.

"She's an alien, Maisie. What we think of as strange is probably just part of an ordinary day for her. This sudden silence of hers could just be something completely normal too. Maybe she's just really concentrating on finally getting that soufflé recipe of hers right for once. You know how she seems to be completely obsessed about that. She's only mentioned it about forty-five times this week," Journey suggested.

Maisie smiled looking slightly more relieved now as she said, "Yeah, maybe you're right. She might even be silent because she's thinking really hard about what her new catchphrase is going to be. She still hasn't come up with one yet after all, and she's been a bit bugged by that too lately. She keeps saying all kinds of weird things and just throwing them out there as catchphrases. All of them completely stink though. I mean come on. Fantastic? What kind of a catchphrase is that?"

"Maybe it worked better when it was said by one of her previous bodies. She said that she still didn't have the right teeth to say it right whatever that means," Journey said with a shrug.

"THIS CONVERSATION IS RAPIDLY BECOMING MORE AND MORE IRRELEVANT AND NONSENSICAL BY THE MOMENT. WAS THERE EVER A PURPOSE TO IT AT ALL?" Rusty asked.

"We're just worried about her, Rusty. Humans tend to think that something's wrong with someone if they deviate from their normal routine for any reason," Journey explained.

"INTERESTING. IF A DALEK DEVIATES FROM THEIR NORMAL ROUTINE, THEY'RE AUTOMATICALLY EXTERMINATED FOR BEING TOO UNRELIABLE IN COMBAT," Rusty said.

Both women looked at him in horror as he quickly added, "I DIDN'T SAY THAT I AGREED WITH IT."

"I should hope not. I've only just gotten the TARDIS to widen the doorways for you, Rusty. Talk like that is liable to make her start not trusting you again," The Doctor said with a warm smile from where she stood at the console.

"You could hear us?" Maisie said with an embarrassed look on her face.

"No, but I could definitely hear Rusty. Daleks aren't exactly known for their ability to whisper, Flapper Girl," The Doctor said.

Maisie frowned as she said, "Flapper Girl? Well, I guess it's better than Train Girl anyway. Doctor, about what you heard . . ."

"You were worried about me. I understand. I'm fine. I was just checking the TARDIS diagnostics for a while. Have any of you noticed anything odd going on lately?" The Doctor said in a slightly worried tone.

"No, not really. What do you mean?" Maisie asked.

"You mean those strange engine noises that I've been hearing lately?" Journey asked.

"What engine noises?" Maisie asked.

"JOURNEY AND I HAVE BOTH HEARD SEVERAL ENGINE-LIKE NOISES THAT DON'T SOUND LIKE THE TARDIS' USUAL BACKGROUND NOISE ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS NOW. ONLY BEING RECENT ADDITIONS TO HER CREW HOWEVER WE WERE UNCERTAIN IF THESE NOISES WERE NORMAL OR NOT," Rusty said.

"I never heard anything like that. I have noticed one weird thing though lately now that you mention it. It seemed to start as soon as I came onboard as a regular passenger. I've noticed that every once in a while for no apparent reason whatsoever someone will say the number forty-five. Maybe I'm just imagining it but it seems to be happening more and more lately," Maisie said.

"Forty-five? Are you sure?" The Doctor asked as she suddenly became alarmed.

"Yeah, I think so," Maisie said as she looked at her in surprise.

"What's so important about that?" Journey asked.

"Suddenly certain things that have been happening lately are starting to make sense that's what. Little things have started missing here and there, the coordinates for our next destination have suddenly changed for no apparent reason on more than one occasion, and my soufflés have been burning up," The Doctor said.

"To be fair, Doctor, that last thing seems to happen to you quite a lot," Journey said as she tried to hide a smile.

"Don't try to be funny, Soldier Girl. It doesn't suit you. I mean that they're been burning up more than usual lately. I don't burn soufflés every single time that I make one after all. It only happens occasionally," The Doctor said.

"Occasionally?" Journey said in disbelief.

"By occasionally if you mean every other time that you try to bake one then I guess you're right," Maisie added.

"It does _not_ happen that often," The Doctor protested.

"THE TARDIS SPRINKLERS COME ON IN THE KITCHEN ON AN ALMOST DAILY BASIS, DOCTOR. I'M AFRAID IF MY CASING KEEPS GETTING WET THAT OFTEN THAT I MIGHT ACTUALLY START LIVING UP TO YOUR NICKNAME FOR ME," Rusty said.

The Doctor chuckled as she said, "I really love it that you have a sense of humor now, Russ. That's entirely my influence on you of course. I'm rubbing off on you, Dalek Boy."

"I HAVE NO SENSE OF HUMOR WHATSOEVER THAT I'M AWARE OF, DOCTOR. I MERELY STATED THE PROBABLE OUTCOME IF I KEEP BEING CONSTANTLY SOAKED BY THE TARDIS PUTTING OUT THE RATHER LARGE FIRES THAT YOU KEEP MAKING IN THE KITCHEN EVER SINCE I CAME ONBOARD," Rusty said.

"Oh, shut up," The Doctor said in a faux angry tone although she said it with a smile.

"What does any of this have to do with anything, Doctor?" Journey asked.

The Doctor suddenly turned serious as she said, "I think that we may have an intruder onboard. In fact, I'm almost sure of it."

"What?" Maisie said in alarm.

"I don't think so, Doctor. Rusty and I would have noticed something like that. We've both been trained to detect signs of espionage around us. Even if I hadn't noticed it, Rusty's sensors would have picked up an extra passenger's life signs by now for sure," Journey said.

"THAT IS CORRECT. THERE ARE ONLY FOUR LIFE FORMS CURRENTLY ON THIS SHIP NOT COUNTING THE TARDIS HERSELF AND HAVE ONLY BEEN FOUR THE ENTIRE TIME SINCE I JOINED THIS CREW," Rusty said.

"That's just it though. This particular being that I'm thinking of wouldn't show up on any regular scan for life signs. He has a ship that's capable of hiding him very effectively. In fact, he could be hidden anywhere around here where there are words. So it would be almost impossible for us to find him. He could be hidden inside of any book in my library, and I really don't want to have to jettison the library unless I have to. I only just got it separated from the swimming pool," The Doctor said.

"Doctor, what are you going on about?" Maisie said with an exasperated sigh.

"I'm talking about an old enemy of mine called Nobody No-One, and that's the last time that I'm going to say his name. In fact, I want it to be the last time that any of you says his name or the words nobody or no one until I'm sure that we've gotten rid of him," The Doctor said.

"Ooh, so he's the one whose name must never be spoken is that it?" Maisie said with a grin.

"Sounds like you've been reading too much Harry Potter to me, Doctor," Journey said as she too began to smile now.

The Doctor became visibly frustrated now as she said, "Oi! You're not listening to me. I'm hearing meh meh meh meh instead. This is serious. Pay attention! All of a sudden I'm having flashbacks of Clara's teaching days. You lot are just as bad as Courtney Woods right now, and I never thought I'd ever hear myself saying that. Now shut up and listen to me. 45 billion dimensions to the left of ours is a universe where the laws of physics are not based on matter and energy like they are in this universe but on words instead. So in this universe then they don't have Time Lords who oversee time and space. Instead they have Word Lords. The Word Lords from what I can tell are very much like my own people except that their power comes from words either spoken or written instead from time."

"And this person who must not be named is one of these Word Lords then?" Journey asked as she suddenly started to look serious.

The Doctor smiled as she now realized that Journey was starting to gather information about a possible new enemy just like a soldier would. The fact that she was still thinking like a soldier bothered her, but at least she was finally taking her seriously now.

"Yes, he's a renegade member of their species who does nothing but cause trouble throughout the multiverse. He revels in mindless destruction and chaos just for the sake of it, and he travels through time and space using a ship called a CORDIS, which is short for Conveyance of Repeating Dialogue in Space/Time. It can actually disguise itself as any spoken or written phrase or word so that it can become almost impossible to find. The only way that you'll know that it's around is by the sound of its engines and the repetition of the number forty-five or a certain phrase over and over again. We've heard both of those things lately, haven't we?" The Doctor said.

Maisie finally began to start taking her seriously now too as she said with a concerned look on her face, "So what can this Word Lord do to us exactly?"

"His power comes from words. If anyone uses his name or even just his first or last name in a sentence then he can do whatever the sentence says that he can do," The Doctor said.

"LIKE WHAT FOR INSTANCE?" Rusty asked.

"Okay, here's an example that isn't using any of his names. Let's say that his name is 'Who' instead. So if someone says something like 'Who can kill me now' for instance but uses the words no one or nobody instead of who in that sentence then he will suddenly kill them because they just gave him the power to do so," The Doctor explained.

Journey nodded with understanding now even as Maisie looked completely horrified by this idea.

"So he can use our own words against us then," Journey said.

"Yes, but we can also use our words against him if we're clever enough. The problem is that he's a homicidal lunatic who's obsessed with killing me and he can't be killed by ordinary means and can even regenerate. Oh, and his CORDIS can make weapons for him to use against us," The Doctor said.

"Oh, this just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it? I really hope that you're wrong about this because I really don't fancy running up against this guy. He sounds just like Missy or the Mummy for that matter, and I'm really getting tired of being hunted down by unstoppable creatures out for my blood," Maisie said with a frightened look on her face.

"I could be wrong you know, Flapper Girl. The last time that I ran across him was literally hundreds of years ago, and I killed him back then by trapping him in the mind of one of my companions as she was dying. Not even he could have escaped that," The Doctor said confidently.

"HE IS A TIME TRAVELLER THOUGH, DOCTOR, SO THIS COULD BE ONE OF HIS PAST SELVES FROM LONG BEFORE THAT EVER HAPPENED," Rusty said.

"I know. That's what I'm afraid of," The Doctor admitted.

"And that just makes it even worse if it's true because we can't kill him without creating a paradox," Journey said.

"That's absolutely right. Good job, Journey," The Doctor said looking impressed at her knowledge of time travel.

"I've been studying all about the principles of time travel ever since you left me behind, Doctor. I guess part of me still hoped that one day I'd get a second chance to travel with you again," Journey said with an embarrassed look on her face.

The Doctor smiled and then wrapped her arms around Journey and hugged her tightly. Journey looked more than a bit shocked at this which immediately caused Maisie to giggle.

The Doctor quickly released Maisie and said in an apologetic tone, "Sorry about that. I got that from Clara it seems. Then again I used to love hugging people myself once so maybe that's coming from both of us. I just wanted to show you that I'm so sorry for leaving you behind."

Journey nodded and gave her a small smile of appreciation for that sentiment as she said, "No problem. Just don't . . . don't do that anymore, okay?"

"Why not? Don't tell me that you're like the Old Man and hate hugs," The Doctor said in surprise.

"I don't exactly hate them. I just . . . I don't do that sort of thing. It's nothing personal," Journey said.

"IT'S NOT YOU, DOCTOR. JOURNEY NEVER MAKES AN EMOTIONAL CONNECTION SUCH AS THAT WITH ANYONE. SHE'S JUST LIKE A DALEK IN THAT WAY," Rusty said with more than a trace of disdain in his voice at the thought of the woman that was the closest thing that he had to a friend being anything like his most hated enemies.

"I see," The Doctor said as she realized that Journey was more like the Old Man than she had realized in that she didn't like any displays of affection whatsoever.

She silently wondered if that had anything to do with her brother's death even as she decided to respect her wishes. She still couldn't see anything wrong with a good hug though especially in their current situation.

She had a feeling that she was going to need a good hug herself if Nobody No-One really was behind all of the strange things happening lately.

Then again Maisie could be right, and she was completely wrong about things. Maybe all of the strange things happening lately were just coincidences and nothing more. It could all just be a paranoid fantasy of hers due to having come across Missy again so soon after her last regeneration. Surely that was all that it was, right?

The Doctor almost laughed at that thought because there was no way that even she was a good enough liar to convince herself of that one.

She was soon proven to be right as the TARDIS suddenly began to start shaking violently as the readouts on the console started to give the Doctor a shocking message.

It was a literal message in fact that said, "Hello, Doctor. If you're reading this, then the virus that I installed in your ship's computer has just activated. You only have minutes to live now. Spend them wisely. Just in case you still haven't figured it out yet your death has been brought to you today by your old friend, Nobody No-One. By the way, Missy says hello . . . and good bye."

"Everyone hold onto something for dear life! We're going to crash!" The Doctor shouted just before all of the lights in the room went out and the console stopped moving.

Everyone was suddenly jerked violently off of their feet as the ship suddenly started to rapidly descend at enormous speed. Luckily thanks to the Doctor's warning they were all holding tightly onto different parts of the room and weren't thrown across it because of this as a result.

They were still all going to die soon though unless the Doctor stopped them from hitting whatever it was that they were now falling towards at such incredible speed. The only thing that had stopped her from dying the last time that the TARDIS had fallen like this was that she was still in the first fifteen hours of regeneration. She wasn't going to be so lucky this time around.

"Doctor, what's going on?" Maisie said in a completely terrified voice.

"Don't worry, Flapper Girl. We're going to be okay," The Doctor said as she desperately struggled to get the engines back online in time.

"Is that another lie?" Maisie asked.

"Yes. Sorry. I was just trying to make you feel better. I really am trying to stop," The Doctor said.

"It's okay, Doctor. This time I don't mind the lie so much because I'm scared out of my wits," Maisie admitted.

"It really is going to be alright. I promise," The Doctor said in an earnest tone not intending on that being a lie.

Even as they continued to freefall at a faster and faster rate by the moment though, she wondered if it wasn't about to turn out to be one anyway though.

**Next: So now we know what Missy had hidden inside of the sarcophagus or rather who. It seems that she was bound and determined to get the Doctor either one way or another this time. Can the Doctor save herself and the others from certain death? Even if she can, will she ever be able to free her ship from Nobody No-One's control or will this be Missy's final revenge as she takes the TARDIS away from the Doctor forever?**


	5. The Power of Words

CHAPTER 5

I do not own Doctor Who or Big Finish and I am making no profit off of this.

Thank you for all of your favorites, follows, and reviews!

THE POWER OF WORDS

As the TARDIS continued to drop violently, the Doctor suddenly smiled with a wicked grin as she said, "No one will be reactivating the TARDIS engines this time it seems."

Suddenly the TARDIS' engines thundered back to life and the lights returned back on as everything on the ship was restored completely back to normal once more.

"Did you just use his own name against him in order to make him save us?" Maisie asked with a wry grin.

"Yep, I did. It works both ways after all. Doesn't it, Nobody?" The Doctor said as she looked at a spot just behind Maisie.

The Doctor's companions now all turned to see a man wearing a bow tie and a tweed jacket standing there with a smirk on his face. He didn't seem to be bothered by what the Doctor had just done in the slightest.

"You didn't really think that I wouldn't have anticipated something like that would you? I'm hardly that careless, Doctor. The virus was merely a calling card. It was just my way of saying hello. Nothing more," Nobody said.

"I know. That's what worries me, Word Man," The Doctor said with a frown.

"If that's how he says hello, I really don't want to see what he does for good bye," Maisie said.

"I BELIEVE THAT WAS THE DOCTOR'S LINE OF THINKING AS WELL, FLAPPER GIRL," Rusty said.

Maisie and Journey both smiled at him in surprise as Journey said, "Since when do you call people by cutesy little nick names, Rusty?"

"IT WAS JUST A MOMENTARY SLIP OF THE TONGUE," Rusty protested.

Rusty seemed to almost be embarrassed by that judging by his tone and body language but Journey couldn't be sure. She had known Rusty for a long time now and probably knew more about Daleks than most people did by this point as a result of that, but even she didn't know for sure what Rusty was thinking at times. Even after all of this time, he was still a mystery to her in so many ways.

She trusted him completely though despite that. He was her best friend and she was almost certain that he felt the same way about her even if he had never said it.

"Just admit it, Rusty. The Doctor's corrupting you, isn't she?" Journey said in a teasing tone.

"I totally resent that, Soldier Girl. I haven't corrupted anyone. I'll have you know that I'm a completely positive influence on everyone that I've ever come across and always have been," The Doctor said with a smile that faded just a little bit too quickly.

It was obvious to her friends that she was very worried. The fact that Nobody continued to have a sinister smile on his face while saying nothing the entire time that they were talking just unnerved them even more.

"There's a lie if I've ever heard one, Doctor," Maisie said with a forced chuckle as she desperately tried to make herself think of something else, anything else, besides that creepy unnerving look on the Word Lord's face.

Finally the Word Lord spoke again at last as he said, "That's because the Doctor is an expert at lies, my dear. She can tell six very different and yet completely convincing lies before breakfast and that's on a slow day."

"Well, you certainly know how to flatter someone, don't you? No wonder you don't have any friends. You really need a girlfriend, Word Man. It would definitely help to improve your personality. Not that you ever had a personality to start with," The Doctor said.

"Why so concerned, Doctor? Are you volunteering for the job?" Nobody taunted.

The Doctor stuck her tongue out in disgust as she said, "I'd sooner date a Dalek. No offense, Russ."

"NONE TAKEN, DOCTOR. FOR FUTURE REFERENCE HOWEVER, YOU'RE DEFINITELY NOT MY TYPE. I HAVE A DEFINITE HEIGHT REQUIREMENT FOR POTENTIAL ROMANTIC PARTNERS," Rusty said.

"Good going, Dalek Boy! You just cracked a joke and completely insulted me at the same time. Don't tell me that you don't have a sense of humor after that one," The Doctor said with a small smile of triumph.

"AGAIN I WASN'T JOKING, DOCTOR, JUST MAKING AN ACCURATE STATEMENT OF MY OWN PERSONAL PREFERENCES," Rusty said in a detached tone.

Journey couldn't be sure but she thought that he was highly amused by the Doctor's remarks and trying very hard not to show it.

"You act like quite the buffoon in this new incarnation, Doctor. You're quick to make a joke and act all friendly and jolly towards everyone. In the end, it's all just an act deep down though isn't it? The inner darkness that always lies inside of you is still there just below the surface eagerly waiting for its chance to get out once more. It's that same darkness that enabled you to trap me within your own friend's mind as she was dying. Now that was a cruel way to come up with for someone to die, Doctor, even for you," Nobody said in a cold voice.

The Doctor's personality completely changed now and she was suddenly all business as she said, "There's no way that you could have escaped that. That was a fixed point in time. I made sure of it."

Nobody chuckled as he said to the Doctor's companions, "Listen to her condemning herself. She made sure that I was completely and utterly destroyed with no way of anyone ever being able to undo it. Listen to how ruthless she is. This is the person who you trust your lives with? Think about that."

"I'm sure that she had a very good reason for whatever she did," Maisie quickly said.

"Yeah, it's not like you're a reliable character reference. You did just try to kill all of us after all," Journey said.

"THAT VERY COURSE OF ACTION EXPLAINS EXACTLY WHY THE DOCTOR FELT THE NEED TO EXTERMINATE YOU," Rusty added.

The Doctor studied her friends' reactions to the Word Lord's words closely even as she said to him, "You didn't escape did you? I can tell now. This is a version of you from before I trapped you so how do you know what will happen in your own future?"

"I'm sure that you've already guessed that, Doctor. You just want me to start talking in the hopes that I'll tell you something that you don't already know. I know all of your tricks, Time Lord. Yes, Missy is behind my being here. She hid my ship inside of the sarcophagus that you so graciously took on board your TARDIS recently. All she had to do was tell me all about what you will do to me in my own future in order to get me to go along with her plan to destroy you. Only she didn't say that it was unchangeable. She said quite the opposite in fact. She wants me to kill you in exchange for her altering my fate, and I believe that she can do it, Doctor," Nobody said.

"That's impossible. She's just lying to you like she does to everyone else. No one can alter a fixed point in time without causing major consequences to the universe as a result. Believe me. I've tried and it definitely didn't work out too well for me," The Doctor said with a sad look in her eyes as she thought of her failure on Mars.

"It might be impossible for you perhaps but not for Missy. She can do exactly what she says, Doctor, because she has a powerful new ally who can completely alter the very nature of reality with her great power. I've seen her do it. All that she requires me to do is to kill you so that you won't be around to help the other Doctor from her own reality. So that's exactly what I'm going to do now, Doctor. I'm going to kill you so that I no longer have to look forward to a horrible death in my future. Is that what you wanted to hear, Doctor? What good did it do you in the end I wonder? You're still going to die anyway no matter what you know," Nobody said with a sly grin.

"Am I? Am I really, Word Man? Tell me what good are your powers going to be if there are no words for you to use against me, eh?" The Doctor said.

Then suddenly she began rapidly moving her eyebrows up and down leaving Nobody looking at her in complete puzzlement. He had absolutely no idea what she was doing.

Journey however did and began to laugh as she started to do the exact same thing. Maisie's face took on a completely puzzled look as she watched this in just as much confusion as Nobody.

Then suddenly she found herself actually beginning to understand what the eyebrow movements meant. They were a language!

She found herself doing the exact same movements herself now in order to communicate as she said in her newfound language, "Doctor, what's going on? Why do I suddenly understand how to do this and why am I doing this instead of speaking? What did you do?"

The Doctor grinned as she said, "It's how they communicate on the planet Delphon. They use the movements of their eyebrows in order to convey everything. I learned it a long time ago when I visited them once back when I wore check trousers. I'm so glad that my eyebrows are just right in this incarnation in order for you to be able to read me properly. You would never have been able to understand me when I was Chin Boy and didn't even have eyebrows or when I was the Old Man and they were so thick that you wouldn't have been able to tell what I was saying. Honestly it was like having a forest growing above my eyes. It was an absolute nightmare trying to keep them under control so that they didn't take over my entire face."

Maisie and Journey both laughed as Journey said, "You still didn't answer Maisie's question though, Doctor. How did you unable us to communicate with you?"

"The TARDIS used her mental connection to you to temporarily rewrite the part of your brains that control speech so that talking this way came naturally to you, and you would automatically use it instead of regular speech without even thinking about it. She did the same thing to Rusty too by the way. He can understand us as well but he can't communicate at all because the poor little Dalek Boy doesn't have any eyebrows unfortunately. Now Nobody can't use our spoken words against us. I've also used the translation matrix to turn all of the written words on the ship into unreadable gibberish. Let's see him work his way around that," The Doctor said smiling proudly at her cleverness as Nobody's expression began to change from one of confusion to absolute fury as he started to realize that something was wrong.

"You manipulated our brains? Without even asking us?" Maisie asked in a disturbed voice.

The Doctor's smile quickly faded as she said, "I'm sorry, Maisie, but I had to in order to stop him. He has no power without words, and now I've completely denied him that. I would never do such a thing normally without asking, and I would never do anything to hurt you, Journey, or Rusty. I need you to know that."

Maisie and Journey both nodded as Journey said, "We understand why you did it, Doctor. It's just a little unnerving to have someone suddenly tampering with your brain without you even knowing about it."

"I know and I'm so sorry about that. I really am. I'll give you both a nice fresh soufflé to make up for it later I promise," The Doctor said.

"Yes, soufflés. The answer to all of life's problems," Maisie said with a hint of amusement on her face.

The Doctor was still concerned despite Maisie's words because both of her friends looked very upset by what she had done. She promised herself that she would it make it all up to them later somehow. She wasn't the person who the Word Lord said that she was. Maybe she wasn't always a good person but she certainly wasn't a malevolent one either especially not to the people that she cared about.

Nobody was now completely enraged as he watched the three women continue to communicate with their eyebrows. He had absolutely no idea what was going on, and it was driving him completely up the wall.

Well, that and the fact that he effectively had no power anymore.

"I'm not sure what you think that you're up to but you can't win, Doctor. I can still kill you even without using words. My virus is still in your system and now that you've stopped talking you can't deactivate it a second time especially if I input the instructions to it manually," Nobody said as he raced to the TARDIS' console.

The Doctor smiled as Nobody tried to enter instructions into the computer, and then realized to his horror that he couldn't understand what was written on the screen. It was completely unrecognizable as a language to him.

"No, you can't do this to me!" Nobody screamed in frustration.

He was so caught up in his rage at what was going on that he didn't even notice the Doctor sneaking up on him until it was far too late for him to do anything about it. She immediately knocked him out cold with a sharp chop to the back of his neck.

Then she quickly placed her hands on the side of his head and made him completely forget everything that had happened that day including everything that he had learned from Missy about his own future. In the process of doing this, she found out exactly what Missy was up to however and that disturbed her more than anything else that had happened to her today.

After the Doctor dropped the Word Lord off at the Arctic base where her seventh incarnation would meet him at next according to what she had read of his timeline, she piloted the TARDIS away with a rapidly sinking feeling in her hearts. The entire multiverse was in danger and what had just happened to her was only a part of that.

"Doctor, what is it?" Maisie asked as she and the others now spoke normally once more after the TARDIS had returned their brains back to their original states.

"It isn't over yet is it?" Journey noted.

"THE WORD LORD SPOKE OF MISSY HAVING A NEW PARTNER. IS THAT WHAT WORRIES YOU NOW, DOCTOR?" Rusty asked.

"Yes, Russ. Yes, it is. I found out everything in Nobody's mind you see. Our Missy is working with another Missy who comes from a parallel universe to ours and that Missy has a plan to take over the entire multiverse. To help her with this plan, she has this incredibly powerful woman named Nightshade who can actually alter the nature of reality itself. They all wanted me out of the way so that I wouldn't help stop her. That's exactly why I have to go and make sure that she's stopped right now," The Doctor said.

"So that's where we're going next then? Another universe?" Maisie asked.

Journey shook her head as she said, "No, she's not taking us anywhere next, Maisie. I can already tell just by looking at her face. She's taking us home."

"Why? Did we do something wrong?" Maisie asked in a horrified voice.

The Doctor smiled as she said, "No, of course not, Flapper Girl. You didn't do anything wrong. None of you did. I'm the one who did something wrong by inviting you all to come along with me and endangering you in the first place. I knew that I shouldn't have but I did it anyway though. I'm a selfish old Doctor you see and I was lonely. I'm going to fix that now though. I'm taking all of you back home where you'll be safe."

"This is because of what the Word Lord said isn't it? It isn't true. You know that, right?" Journey said.

"How do you know? You barely know me," The Doctor said.

"I know because of the way that you're getting so upset about it, Doctor. If you were truly as ruthless as the Word Lord said that you were, you wouldn't care what happened to us, would you?" Journey pointed out.

"SHE'S RIGHT, DOCTOR. I WAS WRONG ABOUT YOU BEFORE. YOU WOULD NEVER MAKE A GOOD DALEK. DALEKS NEVER THINK OF OTHERS BEFORE THEMSELVES NOT EVEN OTHER DALEKS," Rusty quickly added.

"We're the ones who all decided to go with you, Doctor. We know the risks and we accept them. Please let us stay. Please. I have nothing else in my life right now with my grandmother gone. Please let me have this. It's the most that I've ever felt alive in my entire life," Maisie pleaded.

"I feel exactly the same, Doctor. I was doing a lot of good out there when it was just me and Rusty but with you I can do so much more. I can finally do something meaningful and worthwhile with my life, Doctor. That way it'll explain why I'm still here and why my brother's . . . not," Journey said using an emotional voice for the first time since she had set foot on the TARDIS.

"YOUR SURVIVAL HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH ANY SORT OF HIDDEN MEANING TO YOUR LIFE, JOURNEY. STOP ATTACKING YOURSELF OVER WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR BROTHER. IT WASN'T YOUR FAULT THAT HE SURVIVED AND YOU DIDN'T," Rusty said in what the Doctor was shocked to realize was a voice filled with caring and compassion.

"That's fine for you to say, Rusty. You're not the one who has to live with it every day for the rest of your life," Journey said.

"NO, I HAVE TO LIVE WITH THE DEATHS OF OTHERS ON MY CONSCIENCE. UNLIKE YOU, I ACTUALLY AM RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR DEATHS," Rusty admitted.

Journey looked at him with surprise as she said, "Rusty, I didn't know that you were being bothered by that. I'm so sorry."

She put her arms around his casing as she said, "You should have told me. We could have talked about it."

"HOW DO I EVEN BEGIN TO TALK ABOUT BEING A MONSTER?" Rusty said in a voice filled with shame.

"A little bit at a time," Journey said in a gentle voice.

The Doctor could finally see the truth now. The three of them were already broken and they all needed their journeys with her in order to focus on something, anything, besides their own lives at that moment. That still wouldn't make her feel any better if anything happened to them however.

No excuse in the universe did she thought to herself as she thought of Donna, Amy, Rory, River, Adric, Lucie Miller, Kamelion, Katarina, Sara Kingdom, and so many others whose lives were destroyed because of her.

Maybe that was why she had wanted to change everything about this current incarnation including her gender so that she could become a completely different person entirely. It still didn't help her to escape the guilt though or the blame for her past actions.

"Doctor, please just take us along. You might need our help and I wouldn't want anything to happen to you because we weren't there," Maisie pleaded.

"I don't want anything to happen to any of you because you are there. This new enemy is extremely powerful. I saw her and what she can do in Nobody's mind," The Doctor explained.

"So that's all the more reason for you to get a little extra help then, isn't it?" Maisie said.

"That's right, Doctor. You're going to need us," Journey joined in.

"YOU WILL NEED MY FIREPOWER IN ORDER TO KEEP YOU PROPERLY DEFENDED ESPECIALLY SINCE YOU REFUSE TO USE ANY WEAPONS BESIDES YOUR SOUFFLES," Rusty said.

"Now that is a joke, Rusty! Don't try to deny it this time!" The Doctor shouted in triumph.

"YES, I MAY HAVE DEVELOPED A SLIGHT SENSE OF HUMOR AFTER FIGHTING ALONGSIDE JOURNEY FOR SO LONG," Rusty reluctantly admitted.

"Well, it's nothing to be ashamed of, Rusty. In fact, it's a very good thing. It means that you're growing and becoming a better person. It also shows that you're not a monster, Rusty. Not anymore. I'd like to think that I'm helping you with that. I certainly hope so anyway," The Doctor said as she affectionately patted his casing.

"So does this mean that we're staying then?" Maisie asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I suppose it does. Let's go then. We have a whole new universe to visit. Nightshade's universe. We're about to give her Doctor some surprise help. I just hope that it's enough to make a difference," The Doctor said as she entered new coordinates into the TARDIS.

As the Time Lady sighed while she did so, Maisie asked, "What is it now, Doctor? I swear you're never happy are you?"

"No, I am happy, Flapper Girl. I really am . . . for the most part anyway," The Doctor said.

"Then what is it then, Doctor? What's bothering you now?" Journey asked.

"I never did come up with a new catchphrase and now I have to enter into the fight of my lives without one," The Doctor said with a pouting look on her face.

All three of her companions groaned as the Doctor smiled.

**Next: The battle with Nightshade which will star our intrepid TARDIS crew will soon be shown in a special mini-series that will feature a titanic battle involving characters from all of my Doctor Who universes. Next time in this story will feature the aftermath of what happens there as the Doctor becomes more determined than ever to keep her friends safe as a result of the horrible things that she will witness in that other universe. Will even the Doctor be able to keep that promise to herself though when she finally comes face to face with Missy once again at last? It looks like she might need a little help with this one so it's a good thing that the Cyber Brigadier will be handy, isn't it?**


End file.
